Eliminate Criminal Profiteering Act

2025-2026 Bill 5160: Eliminate Criminal Profiteering Act - South Carolina Legislature Online

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
Download
This Bill
in Microsoft Word Format
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
H. 5160
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Rep. Taylor
Document Path: LC-0327HDB26.docx
Introduced in the House on February 11, 2026
Currently residing in the House Committee on
Judiciary
Summary: Eliminate Criminal Profiteering Act
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

Date

Body

Action Description with journal page number

2/11/2026

House

Introduced and read first time (
House Journal-page 42
)

2/11/2026

House

Referred to Committee on
Judiciary
(
House Journal-page 42
)

View the latest
legislative information
at the website
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
02/11/2026

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS
TO ENACT THE "ELIMINATE CRIMINAL PROFITEERING ACT" BY ADDING CHAPTER 83 TO
TITLE 15 SO AS TO PREVENT PERSONS ENGAGED IN WRONGFUL CONDUCT FROM BRINGING
ACTIONS OR OTHERWISE COLLECTING DAMAGE AWARDS FOR EVENTS OR OCCURRENCES
RESULTING FROM THE WRONGFUL CONDUCT, AMONG OTHER THINGS.

B
e it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

S
ECTION 1.
T
itle 15 of the S.C. Code is
amended by adding:

C
HAPTER 83

E
liminate
Criminal Profiteering Act

S
ection
15-83-10
.
A
s used in this chapter:

(
1) "Negligent security" means any
claim against an owner or occupier, or against a security contractor, that
sounds in tort or nuisance, arises from an alleged failure to make or keep the
premises and approaches safe, and seeks to recover any damages.

(
2) "Owner or occupier" means any
person that owns, leases, subleases, occupies, operates, maintains, or manages
real property of any kind, or any director, officer, employee, or agent of such
person.

(
3) "Person" means a natural person,
entity, or government.

(
4) "Prior occurrences of substantially
similar wrongful conduct" means prior occurrences of wrongful conduct which are
sufficiently similar in nature and character, degree of dangerousness, and
circumstances to the wrongful conduct from which a claim of negligent security
arises to lead a reasonable person in the position of the owner or occupier to
apprehend that such wrongful conduct is reasonably likely to occur again upon
the premises and to understand that a specific and known physical condition of
the premises has created a risk of such wrongful conduct on the premises that
is substantially greater than the general risk of such wrongful conduct in the
vicinity of the premises.

(
5) "Security contractor" means any
person that contracts with an owner or occupier to provide protective or
security services upon any premises, or any director, officer, employee, or
agent of such person.

(
6) "Third person" means any person
other than an owner, occupier, or security contractor, or a person under the
direction, control, or supervision of an owner, occupier, or security
contractor.

(
7) "Wrongful conduct" means:

(
a) any violation of federal, state, or
local law, including any ordinance of any political subdivision of the State,
that is punishable as a felony or misdemeanor, regardless of whether such
violation results in an arrest, citation, accusation, indictment, or
conviction; or

(
b) any other conduct that amounts to
an intentional, or wilful and wanton, tort or other action.

S
ection
15-83-20
. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person who
participates or engages in wrongful conduct, or attempts to do the same, may
not bring an action for negligence or otherwise collect any damages for
negligent conduct relating to any acts, occurrences, or other events resulting
in whole or in part from, or otherwise relating to, the wrongful conduct. This
section applies to a person's heirs, estate, assigns, successors in interest,
and other legal representatives. The defendant shall have the burden of proving
by a preponderance of the evidence that a person participated in, or engaged
in, illegal or wrongful conduct or attempted to do the same.

S
ection
15-83-30
.
(
A) For purposes of this
section, "unauthorized alien" means a person who is unlawfully present in the
United States according to the federal Immigration and Nationality Act, 8
U.S.C. Section 1101, et seq.

(
B) General damages and past and future
wages shall not be awarded in an action for negligence or other basis arising
from an automobile collision to a person who was an unauthorized alien at the
time of the collision. This section applies to a person's heirs, estate,
assigns, successors in interest, and other legal representatives. A plaintiff
in an action for negligence arising from an automobile collision that intends to
seek general damages or past and future wages must provide, with their initial
disclosure statement, or as soon thereafter as is practicable, documents
showing that at the time of the collision the injured claimant or person was a
citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States or, if not a citizen
or lawful permanent resident, the injured person was not an unauthorized alien.
It shall be the plaintiff's burden to prove the requirement of this subsection
by a preponderance of the evidence, and failure to do so shall constitute
insufficient evidence as a matter of law to support any award of general
damages or past and future wages.

(
C) This section shall not apply to a
claim made against an uninsured or underinsured motorist policy which names the
unauthorized alien as an insured.

S
ection
15-83-40
.
(
A) For purposes of any
action for negligent security, an owner or occupier owes no duty to protect an
invitee or licensee from any type of wrongful conduct of a third person, unless
the owner or occupier has actual knowledge of prior occurrences of substantially
similar wrongful conduct upon the premises within the preceding year. If an
owner or occupier has such knowledge, then the owner or occupier's duty is to
take reasonable care under the circumstances, which will presumptively be met
if the person did any of the following:

(
1) request the assistance of local law
enforcement and follow any instructions from local law enforcement related to
the same;

(
2) follow the guidelines of a
reputable third-party relating to security and safety measures; or

(
3) hire a security contractor.

(
B) Notwithstanding subsection (A), for
the purposes of any action for negligent security, an owner or occupier owes no
duty to protect an invitee or licensee from the invitee's or licensee's own
wrongful conduct or the wrongful conduct of a third person if the invitee or
licensee comes upon the premises for the purpose of, or in the course of,
engaging in wrongful conduct, or the invitee or licensee engages in wrongful
conduct of any kind while on the premises.

(
C) A trespasser may not maintain an
action for negligent security. For purposes of this section, a person is
presumed to be a trespasser if they are physically present on the premises of
the owner or occupier outside of posted business hours, at a time when the
premises are not open to the public, or without the permission of the owner or
occupier.

(
D) For purposes of this section, if an
owner or occupier engages a security contractor, the security contractor owes
the same duties that an owner or occupier would owe under this section.

S
ection
15-83-50
.
(
A) If the trier of fact
finds that a defendant is liable to a plaintiff in an action for negligent
security, the trier of fact shall make an apportionment of fault, and in making
such an apportionment, the trier of fact must be instructed to apportion fault
among all of the following that are applicable, whether or not a party to the
action and regardless of whether a plaintiff legally collects any damages from
such person:

(
1) the plaintiff;

(
2) an owner or occupier;

(
3) any government or governmental
agency related to a failure to enforce the law and otherwise maintain law and
order;

(
4) any other third person whose
wrongful conduct or negligence was a cause or contributing factor to the event
from which the claim of negligent security arises; and

(
5) any other person to whom fault
otherwise should be apportioned.

(
B) In connection with an apportionment
of fault under this section, no party shall offer evidence, or make an argument
or other comment within the hearing of any juror or prospective juror,
concerning:

(
1) any sentence or imprisonment or
probation, fine, or other punishment that has been, or could be, imposed in a
criminal prosecution of any person for the wrongful conduct from which the
claim of negligent security arises;

(
2) the financial resources of, or
collectability of any judgment against, any party or nonparty; or

(
3) the effect of an apportionment of
fault upon any award of damages.

(
C) If the finder of fact fails to
apportion a reasonable degree of fault under subsection (A) to each third
person whose wrongful conduct was a cause or contributing to the event from
which the claim of negligent security arises, the court shall set aside the
verdict of the jury and order a retrial of liability and damages. There shall
be a presumption that an apportionment of fault is unreasonable if the total
percentage of fault apportioned to all persons who engaged in wrongful conduct
is less than the total percentage of fault apportioned to all other persons. To
overcome this presumption, the trial court must make specific findings in
writing, and those findings and the conclusion of reasonableness shall be
reviewed de novo on any appeal.

S
ection
15-83-60
. Nothing in this chapter prohibits a victim or survivor of crime from
recovering full criminal restitution pursuant to the rights and procedures set
forth for the recovery of such restitution under existing South Carolina law.

S
ECTION
2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

----XX----

This web page was last updated on February 11, 2026 at 1:40 PM